A good piece of investigative reporting from HKFP on the effort and money – HK$84 million – the Hong Kong Trade Development Council spent over several years lobbying US politicians to vote against the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act. If anyone else did it, it would be collusion with foreign powers or meddling in internal affairs. The campaign, of course, failed. Here’s the intro, and here’s the full story.
(That reminds me – how’s the HK government’s PR agency getting on?)
Even the SCMP is doing some investigative work: directors of Mainland bodies that now have corporate votes in Hong Kong ‘elections’ aren’t Hong Kong ID holders. OK, not exactly a surprise.
The NatSec horrors continue to bubble away. Apple Daily responds forthrightly to the Police Commissioner.
Like nearly all pan-dem figures, Tanya Chan is on the CCP’s put-in-jail list. Best the police/prosecutors could manage was a social-distancing rap. Looks like a mess so far.
And People’s Daily announces the next target: student unions.
Every week, I hope nothing will happen for a few days, so just some links will do until Friday. Here goes…
One interesting side-effect of Covid: migrant domestic workers have middle-class Hongkongers by the balls. More pay or wash your own dishes.
The director of Do Not Split – Oscars-nominated low-budget 2019 uprising documentary – thanks Beijing for all the free publicity. CCP = Commie Cinema Promotion.
In case you’re not already thinking of leaving Hong Kong – psychopath transport planners believe the solution to rising car numbers is more roads and parking spaces.
Why is it taking so long for the Catholics to get a bishop for Hong Kong? Could it be the church is torn between looking after its flock and kowtowing to the Communists? Yes it could.
A video of a composed Nathan Law versus a ranting pro-Beijing ogre on a BBC talk show. Nathan adds…
Civility vs barbarity — that’s the difference between democracy and autocracy.
Human Rights Watch’s new report on China’s human-rights violations against Uighurs and Kazaks (press release on report here).
An informed response to a recent SCMP op-ed whitewashing Beijing’s policies in Xinjiang.
Former Premier Wen Jiabao gets censored. The chatter now is that he or some Wen else (haha) might be on the verge of a purge.
The Jamestown Foundation on Beijing state media’s infiltration of Western newspapers and online.
Hungary’s plans to blow a huge amount of money on a Chinese university.
For a glimpse of how things can be without a police-state/dictatorship – private-public partnerships in the conservation of historic buildings in Taiwan (with great photos).
China-related links fans will like this – a newsletter full of them.
This is what is on one of the reading comprehension tests given to early secondary students in local schools:
“Steve was hit by a strange smell when he stepped out of the Mong Kok MTR Station. ‘What is that smell?’ he asked the tourist guide, Nancy. ‘This may be the smell from vehicles’, said Nancy.
Steve and the other tourists had to cover their noses or mouths while walking. ‘Why is the air in Hong Kong so bad?’ asked Steve. Well, today is a very misty and stuffy day. The Air Pollution Index is over 100′, explained Nancy. ‘There has nbeen a great increase in the number of vehicles on the roads over the last twenty years. Many vehicles use diesel instead of petrol because it is much cheaper. So the air is getting bad. The air in busy districts, like Causeway Bay, is worse. Recently there is a new type of taxis that uses a cleaner fuel. It is less harmful to our environment.’
‘I think the government can discourage the use of private vehicles by raising taxes and encourgae the use of public transport’, said Steve.
‘Yes, setting up restricted areas for vehicles in busy districts is a good way, too.
People who drive can park their cars somewhere else and take public transport to these area,’ said Nancy.”
Europe is pushing Hungary in the arms of China.
China is using Hungary as a fifth columnist into Europe. Remind me again which was the only EU nation to validate Sinovac efficacy?
As for building more roads and parking spaces, apart from the quote “build it and they will come” (Re: Field of Dreams and the M25) which everyone knows will just exacerbate the problem, is it just not another excuse to hand taxpayers money over to the developers that offer excellent post retirement remuneration to civil servants?
Thanks for that “China -related links” newsletter link (!).
I particularly enjoyed this:
“China is being defamed without the right to respond, the embassy, er, responded, Digging the hole a bit deeper, it also says Olsson can’t be taken seriously because he has not visited China for five years. That’s odd, given that Olsson is based in Taiwan — which the mainland authorities lose no opportunity to insist is part of China.”
https://www.codastory.com/newsletters/china-influence-monitor-april-15/
HK’s PR industry are shunning Consulum. But it would be nice to know what they’re doing with all that taxpayer money – they seem to be completely silent. Come on, Hong Kong Free Press!
The Czechs, to some degree, got over their honeymoon period with the CCP. Perhaps Hungary will too eventually?
Benedict Rogers’ UCAN column on the Vatican’s perfidious treatment of the Catholic faithful in these parts captures a point of view held widely, here and abroad.
Six of the nine recently-convicted pro-democracy leaders are practicing Catholic.
Six of the nine recently-convicted pro-democracy leaders are practicing Catholic.
Which makes it more curious that two of the four CEs are left-footers – and, seemingly, both of the extremist wing.
I wonder how Carrie’s guaranteed place in heaven is looking these days?
@Casira: Hungary/Oban doesn’t need any pushing.
Maybe Ms Lam no longer believes that the keys to heaven are kept at the Vatican, but are in fact owned by HKEX? Very much looking forward to that particular IPO…
“Lam also said Hong Kong has clearly returned to normal following the “chaos” of recent years, and this is evident by the “very good” developments in the stock market.” courtesy of RTHK.
@jet plane
Cardinal Zen famously said that Donald Tsang was a good Catholic “one hour per day”. It would be surprising if he holds a more favourable view of Mrs. Lam.
Catholicism is mainly a status marker in the baby boomer generation. It means their families could afford to send them to the fanciest schools back in the days before universal public education. It has little to do with the strength or direction of their moral convictions.
Ho Ma Fan – It seems that the stock market is doing its best this morning to prove Ms. Lamb to be wrong. I always find it hilarious when local leaders point to the short-term performance HK stock market as proof of their good governance since the local/municipal economy really has very little to do with the value of the HSI.
Was Michael Chugani invited for a cup of tea, or perhaps too many telephone calls in the middle of the night? First culling by the new TVB owner?
Dentist Eugene hosting the “cutting edge’ (TVB description) current affairs programme will be all about whitening and polish and nothing about extraction.
“Six of the nine recently-convicted pro-democracy leaders are practicing Catholic.
Which makes it more curious that two of the four CEs are left-footers – and, seemingly, both of the extremist wing.”
While I would agree with you on that with regards to Carrie Lam, I don’t think Donald Tsang belongs to the left footed extremist wing. His signature policy was the objectivist “Big Market, Small Government” and he enjoyed to hobnob with property developers. They had more influence on him than Beijing. He would stall Beijing in the way only a bureaucrat could: Nod and smile to their marching orders of implementing National Education, and then kick that can down the road to CY.
CY is definitely part of the radical camp, but he’s a Commie not a Catholic.
@Toph
There is truth in your observation about the apparent self-interested nature of some people’s attachment to Catholicism as a means of educational advancement in Hong Kong, but it is noteworthy that, long after the social climbers’ children have matriculated, the pews are still full every Sunday, in Catholic and Protestant churches alike, and that the atheistic colonising power is going to have its hands full trying to dislodge them.
@ Mark Bradley
I don’t think Donald Tsang belongs to the left footed extremist wing.
You don’t consider going to mass every day not extreme?